2011 HumanCar Imagine PS On Sale Next Year Priced From $15,000

This odd-looking vehicle is the 2011 HumanCar Imagine PS, a car best described as an electric vehicle that can also be self-propelled, a kind of human-electric hybrid so to speak. Not only that but it’s also a mobile power generator with a 110 Volt AC out.

HumanCar was started by Charles Greenwood, who came up with the original idea back in 1968 whilst stuck in traffic. Looking at all the commuters stuck in cars, Greenwood couldn’t help but feel that there was a better way to move people around. Thus the HumanCar concept was born.

How it works is fairly simple. Occupants generate electricity by pulling on small handles located inside the car, similar to a rowing machine. However, if they need to pick up the pace a pair of electric motors running on battery power cut in. The best part is that all occupants can help propel the car, making it ideal for car-pooling.

HumanCar is currently taking orders for the Imagine PS, which is priced from $15,000 and starts delivery next year. Of course it wouldn’t be a proper car without any options so developers also added a navigation and communications system plus a stereo with iPod integration and even air-conditioning. Perfect for cooling you down after all that work.

The company also has several other projects in the works, including a 1 kW home power generator, a more conventional sedan model and even a sports car. Greenwood’s vision for the future is a landscape with guided tracks that could power and control a car during each leg of a commute, with a mix of human and electric power to propel the vehicle where no guideway is available.